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From: NASA Aeronautical Engineer
Date: 26 Jul 2000
Time: 13:22:21
This article tweaked something in me.
We as a country are doing the "easier wrong" in almost every aspect of our society. Here at NASA, we eliminated the performance plan that actually rated our work, for a simple pass/fail system (unless you punch your boss, you will pass). Also, we have promoted the program managers and lessened the role of the branch heads (supervisors) and, of course, stopped promoting the researchers, promoting only those that write good proposals and get others to do their work (and in the process, get the awards for the other's work).
Or take the case of public schools: They allow the students to behave in the most uncivilized manor imaginable. The students have no respect for their teachers and the teachers allow this behavior without recourse (they and the school board don't want to have a lawsuit on their hands). I periodically go to my children's classes (embarrassing my kids completely), and I can not believe how their classmates act. At least when I am there my kids pay attention and respect to the teachers (if they didn't, they know that their punishment at home would not be pleasant)). I actually wish that the teachers had their paddles, even though I never got one used on me, just watching others get their just reward was enough to make me think before acting.
I feel that most Americans think that we live in a friendly world (I actually think that they feel that everyone loves us because we are just and stick up for the underdog). However, just because the rest of society is getting soft and accepting of anything imaginable, does not mean that our military should allow all comers and lessen the requirements in any way shape or form from what it was 40 or 50 years ago. I actually believe that if the trouble makers in the schools, the gang members, the petty thieves, were sent to a REAL boot camp until they reached 21, that most would be straightened out, the schools would get under control, the inner cities and slums would be rid of a lot of shady characters, and perhaps a little more respect would be given to authority in general (everyone benefits from seeing that you can't get away with acting like an animal). But there also must be punishment for those that break the rules in the military. If we have a system that takes in the young hoodlums, we must be prepared to house those that can't be reformed.